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YA Book BlogMon, 02 Apr 2018 17:38:19 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.833498755ABookAndALattehttps://feedburner.google.comReview: DRIVE by Stephanie Fournethttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/iO-IdlDy8rQ/drive-by-stephanie-fournet.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2017/10/drive-by-stephanie-fournet.html#respondMon, 09 Oct 2017 17:53:54 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=11125I have loved everything I?ve read from Stephanie Fournet, and DRIVE did not disappoint! As usual, Fournet delivered great characters and an immersing, heart-wrenching romance. There?s so much to love, that I decided to make the list below. Ten Things I Loved About DRIVE (no particular order): Characterizations – I quickly connected with Jacques and [...]

Growing up as the daughter of a world famous blues legend, Rainey Memphis Reeves learned everything she needed to know about musicians. They are phony, unfaithful, and never home ? even when it matters.

Six years ago, an accident left her shattered, and even now, Rainey can?t trust herself behind the wheel of a car.

But when she meets Jacques Gilchrist, the sweet, soulful, and heart-stoppingly handsome Uber driver, Rainey discovers she can forget her fear when she?s with him.

Until she learns he?s a musician. And worse than that, he?s good. Too good.

Jacques Gilchrist has tried for years to break out of the small-town music scene, but as soon as he meets Rainey, he can?t stop writing songs about her. He?s about to take the world by storm, but if he wants Rainey by his side, Jacques will have to prove he?s nothing like her father.

He?s determined, even if he has to drive her across the country to do it.

I have loved everything I?ve read from Stephanie Fournet, and DRIVE did not disappoint! As usual, Fournet delivered great characters and an immersing, heart-wrenching romance. There?s so much to love, that I decided to make the list below.

Ten Things I Loved About DRIVE (no particular order):

Characterizations – I quickly connected with Jacques and Rainey

The way Pal would wake up Jacques each morning ?

Two words: ROAD TRIP. Everything about it – from the snacks to the sweet and perfect hotel room scenes.

The incorporation of music – songs mentioned, records, lyrics, small venues

Floyd?s three words of the day, they added a touch of magic

Getting to know Lafayette more, the town where Fournet?s books take place

The inclusion of Louisiana French/Creole culture

That I?ll never take an Uber again without wondering about the driver?s backstory. I usually talk to Uber drivers, but now I?ll be even more curious!

The general appreciation for family – however they are created

The HEA ending!

DRIVE was a perfect escape read that I highly recommend to any fan of romance. There were a few cheesy lines in the epilogue but by then I loved the characters so much that they just made me smile. As expected, I?m already anxiously waiting for Stephanie Fournet?s next book!

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2017/10/drive-by-stephanie-fournet.html/feed011125http://bookandlatte.com/2017/10/drive-by-stephanie-fournet.htmlTour + Giveaway | GUARDIAN OF SECRETS by Brenda Drakehttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/5NyaNBzfGhs/guardian-of-secrets-blog-tour.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2017/02/guardian-of-secrets-blog-tour.html#commentsFri, 10 Feb 2017 13:00:08 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=11115Today, I have a treat for you as part of Brenda Drake’s Blog Tour for GUARDIAN OF SECRETS… an interview of Gia Kearns by Arik Baine! Check out the Library Jumpers series below, the interview, and be sure to enter the giveaway! GUARDIAN OF SECRETS (Library Jumpers #2)by Brenda DrakePublication Date: February 7, 2017Publisher: Entangled Teen [...]

Today, I have a treat for you as part of Brenda Drake’s Blog Tour for GUARDIAN OF SECRETS… an interview of Gia Kearns by Arik Baine! Check out the Library Jumpers series below, the interview, and be sure to enter the giveaway!

Sure, jumping through books into the world?s most beautiful libraries to protect humans from mystical creatures is awesome. No one knows that better than Gia Kearns, but she could do without the part where people are always trying to kill her. Oh, and the fact that Pop and her had to move away from her friends and life as she knew it.

And if that isn?t enough, her boyfriend, Arik, is acting strangely. Like, maybe she should be calling him ?ex,? since he?s so into another girl. But she doesn?t have time to be mad or even jealous, because someone has to save the world from the upcoming apocalypse, and it looks like that?s going to be Gia.

Gia Kearns would rather fight with boys than kiss them. That is, until Arik, a leather clad hottie in the Boston Athenaeum, suddenly disappears. While examining the book of world libraries he abandoned, Gia unwittingly speaks the key that sucks her and her friends into a photograph and transports them into a Paris library, where Arik and his Sentinels?magical knights charged with protecting humans from the creatures traveling across the gateway books?rescue them from a demonic hound.

Jumping into some of the world’s most beautiful libraries would be a dream come true for Gia, if she weren?t busy resisting her heart or dodging an exiled wizard seeking revenge on both the Mystik and human worlds. Add a French flirt obsessed with Arik and a fling with a young wizard, and Gia must choose between her heart and her head, between Arik’s world and her own, before both are destroyed.

Thief of Lies (Library Jumpers #1):

Guardian of Secrets (Library Jumpers #2):

Interview of Gia Kearns by Arik Baine

You used to live in Boston?s North End with your father. If you were to take me on a tour of your neighborhood, what would you want to do?

I?d take you on walking tour to see some of the historical buildings in the area, such as Paul Revere?s house, and drag you along Hanover Street to browse the shops. After, we?d eat at one of my many favorite Italian restaurants. The Italian food in the North End is so good. Then I?d take you to get a delicious cannoli at Mike?s Pastries. My fav is chocolate chip.

I?ve been in your apartment. I know, I?m sorry about the damage. It?s somewhat small. Are all the apartments in Boston like that or is it because it?s just you and your father living there?

Well, not all in Boston are. North End apartments do tend to be tiny. Ours is small, but its two bedrooms, and just big enough for Pop and I. He got the apartment before I was born. He says he?ll never move, because he?s marked my growth on the frame of the bathroom door. Well, that was before ? you know. Anyway, I loved living there. It?s like living in history.

I?m always surprised how much you can eat. You seem like you?re always hungry. What is your favorite food?

Well, duh, see the answer above. Italian all the way! Carbs, sauce, cheese ? it?s heaven on a plate.

When you?re nervous, you get this cute little twitch at the corner of your mouth. Is that from an accident or a family trait?

I used to think it was from accident, but recently found out I inherited it from my mom.

You just recently found out you were betrothed to Bastien when you were a baby. How do you feel about it ? about him?

*silence*

You?re blushing.

I?m not.

You are.

You caught me off guard, is all. As I said before, there?s no way I?m keeping that promise. It?s archaic anyway. No one?s telling me who I?m going to marry.

You didn?t answer the last part of the question.

I don?t know. He?s arrogant, but nice. His people really like him. But I have eyes for someone else.

Now, I?m blushing.

Guys don?t blush. Do they?

I?m not certain. Perhaps. One last question, you?ve handled yourself well with all this danger happening around you. How are you holding up?

I?m terrified at times, but there?s so much at stake. I have to do what?s expected of me, I guess.

About Brenda Drake

Brenda Drake is a New York Times bestselling author of Thief of Lies (Library Jumpers #1), Guardian of Secrets (Library Jumpers #2), Touching Fate (Fated Series #1), and Cursing Fate (Fated Series #2). She grew up the youngest of three children, an Air Force brat, and the continual new kid at school. She hosts workshops and contests for writers such as Pitch Wars and Pitch Madness on her blog, and holds Twitter pitch parties on the hashtag, #PitMad. When she?s not writing or hanging out with her family, she haunts libraries, bookstores, and coffee shops, or reads someplace quiet and not at all exotic (much to her disappointment). Look for her upcoming novels, Thunderstruck, Seeking Fate (Fated Series #3), and Assassin of Truths (Library Jumpers #3) coming soon from Entangled Teen.

Many thanks to Brenda and Chapter by Chapter for having me as part of the tour! Be sure to follow the tour for more amazing content and a chances to win!

Sure, jumping through books into the world?s most beautiful libraries to protect humans from mystical creatures is awesome. No one knows that better than Gia Kearns, but she could do without the part where people are always trying to kill her. Oh, and the fact that Pop and her had to move away from her friends and life as she knew it.

And if that isn?t enough, her boyfriend, Arik, is acting strangely. Like, maybe she should be calling him ?ex,? since he?s so into another girl. But she doesn?t have time to be mad or even jealous, because someone has to save the world from the upcoming apocalypse, and it looks like that?s going to be Gia.

Thief of Lies (Library Jumpers #1):

Guardian of Secrets (Library Jumpers #2):

Excerpt from GUARDIAN OF SECRETS

She did a U-turn and drove off. I sprinted to the area where I spotted the lightning. A shadowed figure sat on a white bench near the water. Another flash of light kissed the sky and illuminated Nick.

Since discovering he was a wizard, Nick struggled with his new magic. And he was careless. Anyone could spot him out here. How would he explain it to someone who was human and not from the Mystik realm? I couldn?t imagine how it felt to have that much power. Unlike him, I was a Sentinel. I had little magic and relied on my battle training to best wizards and other-world creatures. He only needed to shock or electrocute his adversaries.

?What exactly are you doing?? I asked, approaching.

He almost fell off the bench. ?Shit, Gia. Don?t sneak up on a person like that.?

?Seriously, Nick? What are you doing? Someone might see you, and then we?d be discovered.?

?Just leave me alone.?

?I?m not going to just leave you alone.? I sat down on the bench beside him. A light breeze swept loose strands of my hair across my face. The briny smell of the ocean filled my nose. ?Talk to me. You?re my best friend, Nick. I?m here for you.?

He formed an electric charge on his palm. I created my pink globe and tossed it on his hand, snuffing out the charge.

He made another electric ball and I cast another globe at it.

?Quit doing that.?

?You stop it.?

?I get it. Your globe is badass. It can counter magic and shield people, but it makes you weak. I can do this all night and wear you out.?

?You?re not nice.?

He buried his face in his hands. The knuckles on his right one were torn, with blood coagulating around the wounds. ?I don?t know what?s happening to me. I can?t stop myself. I know I?m being mean to Deidre, to my parents?to everyone.?

?You haven?t been that mean to me, yet. That has to say something. I?m the most annoying one of the bunch.?

He snorted. ?Did you just snort??

?No.? He looked startled. ?It was a sneeze.?

?I think you snorted.?

His face brightened. ?I know what you?re trying to do. And it?s working.?

?I?m not trying to do anything. That was a full-on snort.? I wrapped my arm over his back and watched the water lap against the retaining wall in front of us. ?I know you can?t see a therapist for this, ?cause what would you say? That you just found out you?re the son of the most evil wizard of the Mystik world and the curers recently released your magic??

He gave me a half smile. ?Yeah, that might not go over too well.?

?Or maybe you could. They?d think you were delusional, and you?d score some drugs.?

?Drugs make me nauseous.?

He stared at his hands, and I stared at the water, searching for the right words to say. ?This has to be tough for you. I get it. I?ve been there. It?ll take time to adjust. How about I be your counselor? Anytime you feel anxious or angry, you call me and we?ll punch some bags or whatever. It always helps me to relax. Plus, my services are cheap.?

?Violence would make you relax.? He was pleased with his retort and laughed, which was followed by another snort.

About Brenda Drake

Brenda Drake is a New York Times bestselling author of Thief of Lies (Library Jumpers #1), Guardian of Secrets (Library Jumpers #2), Touching Fate (Fated Series #1), and Cursing Fate (Fated Series #2). She grew up the youngest of three children, an Air Force brat, and the continual new kid at school. She hosts workshops and contests for writers such as Pitch Wars and Pitch Madness on her blog, and holds Twitter pitch parties on the hashtag, #PitMad. When she?s not writing or hanging out with her family, she haunts libraries, bookstores, and coffee shops, or reads someplace quiet and not at all exotic (much to her disappointment). Look for her upcoming novels, Thunderstruck, Seeking Fate (Fated Series #3), and Assassin of Truths (Library Jumpers #3) coming soon from Entangled Teen.

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2017/02/guardian-of-secrets-release-launch.html/feed211107http://bookandlatte.com/2017/02/guardian-of-secrets-release-launch.htmlTHE 100 | Book/TV Show Blitzhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/bWflftCiCfs/the-100-book-tv-show-blitz.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2017/02/the-100-book-tv-show-blitz.html#commentsWed, 01 Feb 2017 14:11:48 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=11101 I am so excited that THE 100 returns to TV tonight! And to help celebrate the show’s return Little Brown Books For Young Readers and Rockstar Book Tours are giving away 5 Boxed Sets of the Complete series! So if you?d like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this [...]

I am so excited that THE 100 returns to TV tonight! And to help celebrate the show’s return Little Brown Books For Young Readers and Rockstar Book Tours are giving away 5 Boxed Sets of the Complete series! So if you?d like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post.

About The Book

All four thrilling novels in The 100 series, now available in a paperback boxed set!

Ever since nuclear war destroyed our planet, humanity has been living on city-like spaceships hovering above the toxic surface. As far as anyone knows, no one has stepped foot on Earth in centuries–that is, until one hundred juvenile delinquents are sentenced to return and recolonize the hostile land. The future of the human race rests in their hands, but nothing can prepare the 100 for what they find on this strange and savage planet.

Read the series that inspired the hit TV show. The 100, Day 21, Homecoming, and Rebellion are gathered together for the first time in this striking box set, perfect for fans and series newcomers alike.

About Kass Morgan

Kass Morgan studied literature at Brown and Oxford, and now resides in Brooklyn, where she lives in constant fear of her Ikea bookcase collapsing and burying her under a mound of science fiction and Victorian novels. Kass is currently working on the sequel to The 100, which she?ll finish as soon as she finds a coffee shop that allows laptops on the weekend.

Giveaway

5 winners will receive the complete boxed set of THE 100 Series, US Only. Ends on February 8th at Midnight EST!a Rafflecopter giveaway

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2017/02/the-100-book-tv-show-blitz.html/feed211101http://bookandlatte.com/2017/02/the-100-book-tv-show-blitz.htmlRelease+Giveaway | LONG WAY HOME by Katie McGarryhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/FUHF89jx38Q/long-way-home-release-launch.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2017/01/long-way-home-release-launch.html#respondTue, 31 Jan 2017 20:24:06 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=11096The highly anticipated third book in Katie McGarry?s Thunder Road Series is being released today! LONG WAY HOME is a Young Adult Contemporary Romance being published by Harlequin Teen! Grab your copy of the next book in this emotionally charged series, and don?t miss Violet and Chevy?s story! LONG WAY HOME Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Violet has [...]

The highly anticipated third book in Katie McGarry?s Thunder Road Series is being released today! LONG WAY HOME is a Young Adult Contemporary Romance being published by Harlequin Teen! Grab your copy of the next book in this emotionally charged series, and don?t miss Violet and Chevy?s story!

LONG WAY HOME Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Violet has always been expected to sit back and let the boys do all the saving.

It?s the code her father, a member of the Reign of Terror motorcycle club, raised her to live by. Yet when her dad is killed carrying out Terror business, Violet knows it?s up to her to do the saving. To protect herself, and her vulnerable younger brother, she needs to cut all ties with the club?including Chevy, the boy she?s known and loved her whole life.

But when a rival club comes after Violet, exposing old secrets and making new threats, she?s forced to question what she thought she knew about her father, the Reign of Terror, and what she thinks she wants. Which means re-evaluating everything: love, family, friends . . . and forgiveness.

Caught in the crosshairs between loyalty and freedom, Violet must decide whether old friends can be trusted?and if she?s strong enough to be the one person to save them all.

“An intoxicating and unforgettable story that kept me glued to the page.”

?Kami Garcia, #1 New York Times bestselling author, on Walk the Edge

Excerpt from LONG WAY HOME

CHEVY

The instructions of the English homework I didn?t do hangs out from the top of my folder: Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both.

Story of my life.

According to my football coach, I chose wrongly on the two crap paths I had to face last week. I just ran into Coach on the way to English, and he ripped into me for my sorry decision-making skills when it came to me choosing to stand up for the Reign of Terror Motorcycle Club instead of a member of my football team.

I didn?t just get my ass chewed out, his tirade made me late for English with no tardy note. Which is great since my English teacher hates late students like I hate riding my motorcycle in forty degree weather while it rains.

I round the corner, then peek through the small window on the door of my class. Ms. Whitlock stands in front of her desk in her patented white button-down shirt, gray pencil skirt, and dark-rimmed glasses. From the back row, my best friend Razor meets my eyes and shakes his head. Damn. That means she?s in one of her moods where she?s refusing to let anyone in.

I?m not a tail-tucked-between-my-legs type of guy, but this lady is one of the few who can reduce me to begging. If she doesn?t let me in, then she?ll mark me as absent, the front office will think I skipped, and that means I won?t be able to play at tonight?s football game.

The window rattles when I knock. The entire class turns their heads in my direction, but Ms. Whitlock doesn?t. The muscles in my neck tighten. She is one of the hardest core people I know and my grandfather is the president of a motorcycle club. That says something.

She starts for the white board and I knock on the door again. This time, Ms. Whitlock does look my way and she grants me the type of glare reserved for people who kick puppies. I got it. I?m late. I?m the scum of humanity, so let my ass in so I can play football.

There?s this guy in my club, Pigpen. He?s about the same age as Ms. Whitlock, late twenties, and he?s a walking hard-on for this woman even though she would never give him the time of day. He practically runs into walls when she?s around because he?s too focused on checking her out. I don?t see gorgeous?all I see is seriously pissed off and the person standing between me and playing.

Ms. Whitlock points at the clock over her desk. She?s telling me I can wait. If I?m lucky, she?ll open the door after the quiz that I?ll receive a zero on. If I?m not so lucky, she won?t open the door at all.

Two pathetic paths and I could only travel one. Nowhere in that stupid poem did it mention there was good and bad to both paths and that sometimes it?s best not to choose, but to set up camp at the fork and do nothing at all.

I slam my hand into the nearest locker, almost relishing the sting.

?Feel better??

A glance across the hallway and I freeze. Doesn?t matter how many times I see her in a day, she still manages to take my breath away.

Don?t Miss the First Two Titles in the Thunder Road Series! Grab your copies today!

Katie McGarry was a teenager during the age of grunge and boy bands and remembers those years as the best and worst of her life. She is a lover of music, happy endings, reality television, and is a secret University of Kentucky basketball fan.

Katie is the author of full length YA novels, PUSHING THE LIMITS, DARE YOU TO, CRASH INTO YOU, TAKE ME ON, BREAKING THE RULES, NOWHERE BUT HERE, and WALK THE EDGE and the e-novellas, CROSSING THE LINE and RED AT NIGHT. Her debut YA novel, PUSHING THE LIMITS was a 2012 Goodreads Choice Finalist for YA Fiction, a RT Magazine’s 2012 Reviewer’s Choice Awards Nominee for Young Adult Contemporary Novel, a double Rita Finalist, and a 2013 YALSA Top Ten Teen Pick. DARE YOU TO was also a Goodreads Choice Finalist for YA Fiction and won RT Magazine?s Reviewer?s Choice Best Book Award for Young Adult Contemporary fiction in 2013.

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2017/01/long-way-home-release-launch.html/feed011096http://bookandlatte.com/2017/01/long-way-home-release-launch.htmlChapter Reveal+Giveaway | LONG WAY HOME by Katie McGarryhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/fNJgTQXaPCY/long-way-home-chapter-one-reveal.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2017/01/long-way-home-chapter-one-reveal.html#respondWed, 11 Jan 2017 13:00:59 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=11084The highly anticipated third book in Katie McGarry?s Thunder Road Series is being released on January 31st! LONG WAY HOME is a Young Adult Contemporary Romance being published by Harlequin Teen; pre-order your copy of the next book in this emotionally charged series, and don?t miss Violet and Chevy?s story. Check out the first chapter [...]

The highly anticipated third book in Katie McGarry?s Thunder Road Series is being released on January 31st! LONG WAY HOME is a Young Adult Contemporary Romance being published by Harlequin Teen; pre-order your copy of the next book in this emotionally charged series, and don?t miss Violet and Chevy?s story. Check out the first chapter below and be sure to pre-order your copy for the amazing bonus scenes!

CHAPTER ONE

Chevy

The instructions of the English homework I didn?t do hang out from the top of my folder: Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both.

Story of my life.

According to my football coach, I chose wrongly on the two crap paths I had to face last week. I just ran into Coach on the way to English, and he ripped into me for my sorry decision-making skills when it came to me choosing to stand up for the Reign of Terror Motorcycle Club instead of a member of my football team.

I didn?t just get my ass chewed out, his tirade made me late for English with no tardy note. Which is great since my English teacher hates late students like I hate riding my motorcycle in forty degree weather while it rains.

I round the corner, then peek through the small window on the door of my class. Ms. Whitlock stands in front of her desk in her patented white button-down shirt, gray pencil skirt and dark-rimmed glasses. From the back row, my best friend, Razor, meets my eyes and shakes his head. Damn. That means she?s in one of her moods where she?s refusing to let anyone in.

I?m not a tail-tucked-between-my-legs type of guy, but this lady is one of the few who can reduce me to begging. If she doesn?t let me in, then she?ll mark me as absent, the front office will think I skipped, and that means I won?t be able to play at tonight?s football game.

The window rattles when I knock. The entire class turns their heads in my direction, but Ms. Whitlock doesn?t. The muscles in my neck tighten. She is one of the hardest core people I know and my grandfather is the president of a motorcycle club. That says something.

She starts for the whiteboard and I knock on the door again. This time, Ms. Whitlock does look my way and she grants me the type of glare reserved for people who kick puppies. I got it. I?m late. I?m the scum of humanity, so let my ass in so I can play football.

There?s this guy in my club, Pigpen. He?s about the same age as Ms. Whitlock, late twenties, and he?s a walking hard-on for this woman even though she would never give him the time of day. He practically runs into walls when she?s around because he?s too focused on checking her out. I don?t see gorgeous?all I see is seriously pissed off and the person standing between me and playing.

Ms. Whitlock points at the clock over her desk. She?s telling me I can wait. If I?m lucky, she?ll open the door after the quiz that I?ll receive a zero on. If I?m not so lucky, she won?t open the door at all.

Two pathetic paths and I could only travel one. Nowhere in that stupid poem did it mention there was good and bad to both paths and that sometimes it?s best not to choose, but to set up camp at the fork and do nothing at all.

I slam my hand into the nearest locker, almost relishing the sting.

?Feel better??

A glance across the hallway and I freeze. Doesn?t matter how many times I see her in a day, she still manages to take my breath away. Violet leans against the lockers as beautiful as ever. Red silky hair flowing over her shoulders, a pair of ripped jeans that look like they were tailored for her curves and enough bracelets around her wrists that they clank together when she moves.

Do I feel better? Not really, but I nod anyway as I try to judge if being alone with Violet causes more pain than having my balls ripped off. ?Didn?t hurt.?

?Yes, I can see how slamming your hand against a locker didn?t hurt at all.?

My lips tilt up because she got me, and on top of that, Violet made a joke. Since she broke up with me last spring, things between us have been tense. On her side and on mine. Some people, like me and Violet, aren?t supposed to break up. Some people, like me and Violet, don?t know how to be near each other when we do part ways. ?Are we talking now??

?I?m locked out of class. You?re locked out of class. I could ignore you if that?s what you want.?

It?s not. Her ignoring me is never what I wanted. ?Why are you late??

Violet presses her lips together and looks away. A sixth sense within me stirs.Something?s wrong. I?ve known her my entire life. We were born only a few weeks apart and we learned to crawl on the sticky floor of the Reign of Terror clubhouse. We were friends, always friends, until one day, we weren?t just friends anymore. We became more until we lost it all.

?Late?s not your thing,? I say. Violet?s unconventional. Marches to her own drummer, but she?s not the type to be late to class. It?s a respect thing for her, something her dad taught her and Violet may never listen to another living soul, but she listened to her father. ?What?s going on??

She?s silent and frustration rumbles through me. Violet used to tell me everything. Used to see me as someone who could help solve her problems. She doesn?t see me like that anymore and it pisses me off. I?m angry at her for making us this way. Angry at myself for not figuring out how to fix us.

?You being late wouldn?t have anything to do with Stone, would it?? Stone?s her brother and the question?s a shot in the dark, but I don?t want to miss the chance to keep conversation with her going.

?Why are you late?? she replies as a nonanswer and my head snaps up. Guess sometimes blind shots do hit their mark. Violet was late because of Stone.

?What happened?? I push.

?I?m not talking about it.?

?Vi??

She cuts me off. ?I told you how to help me and my brother six months ago and you told me no.?

By running away? No again to that insane solution.

?Tell me why you?re late,? she says. ?If you don?t, then you need to stop talking, because the last thing either of us needs right now beyond missing a quiz or possibly being marked as absent is detention for getting into a shouting match. At least it?s the last thing I need, okay??

I back up to the lockers across from her and lightly hit my head against the metal. Yeah, I don?t want to talk about why I?m late either. I shove a hand into my pocket and try to think of a change in subject. Telling Violet I?m late because my football coach tore into me for hitting a guy who was causing problems for the Terror, a guy who had been causing problems for her, won?t help me and Violet stay civil. She?s mad at the club, which makes her mad at me.

Violet?s watching me, and her expression is a lot like someone trying to figure out a word problem for math. Unfortunately, she knows me as well as I know her.

?Being late is going to cost you, isn?t it?? she asks. ?You can?t play tonight if she marks you absent, can you??

I meet her blue eyes, and my chest hurts at the sympathy I find there. I?d willingly miss tonight?s game if I could rewind back to a time where I could talk to Violet with ease and that?s not the type of trade I?d normally make.

Football is my life. So is the motorcycle club. The Reign of Terror are my family?the blood kind and the bonds of brotherhood kind. I don?t know who I am without the Terror, but to be honest, I don?t know who I am without football either.

Lately, I?ve been torn between the two, just like that poem, and everyone in my life has chosen a side. Violet used to be the person I could talk to, but then she walked.

Six months ago, Violet asked me to run away with her.She was driven by grief, driven by something she wouldn?t tell me about. When I told her no, that we needed to stay home, to be near our family, to be near the club, Violet returned the next night and announced I was choosing the club over her and that we were done.

Being a running back, I?ve taken more than my fair share of hits over the years, but I?ve never been as blindsided as I was that night. Never experienced the type of pain her leaving me created.

The door to the classroom opens and a sense of relief washes over me. I?ll have to bust my ass to bring up my grade thanks to that zero on the quiz, but at least I?ll be able to play tonight.

Ms. Whitlock steps out and sizes me up, then Violet. ?I?m only letting you in if you have a note, otherwise you can head to the office and hope they give you one.?

Screw me. There?s no way I?ll make it to the office, get a note and return in time. Right as I?m about to kick the hell out of the locker, Violet glides past me and hands in her note. ?This is Chevy?s.?

My head whips in her direction. ?It?s what??

?Yours.? Violet meets my eyes. ?Thanks for offering it to me, but it?s not right for me to take it. I?m the one who didn?t have a note, and I?m the one who needs to make it right.?

She begins walking backward, and my short-circuited brain sparks back to life. I can?t let her do this. ?Violet??

?Have a good game tonight,? she says, then disappears down the stairs.

?Are you joining us, Mr. McKinley, or not?? Ms. Whitlock demands. Never met a person I hate as much as this lady and it takes everything I have to force one foot in front of the other.

Everyone watches me as I stalk down the aisle then drop into the last seat in the row, the one next to Razor. He?s calm, cool, blond hair, blue eyes, and he?s watching me like an owl who?s considering whether it wants that unsuspecting mouse for a snack now or later.

Ms. Whitlock is lost in her own world as she continues babbling about poem interpretations and people who died too long ago. I can do little more than open my folder and stare at the top of my homework.

?Chevy,? Razor whispers, and I glance over at him. He points to the paper on his desk and in his messy handwriting is You okay?

Yes, because I get to play football tonight. No, because Violet sacrificed herself for it to happen. Hell no, because the world?s messed up and I don?t know how to fix it. Worse no, because I don?t know if I should read more into what Violet did?if it means somewhere deep inside she still thinks we have a chance.

I shake my head, Razor nods and the two of us stare at the whiteboard. Two roads. One path. Can?t take both. The guy who wrote it acts like the choice should be easy. It?s not. And he also didn?t mention what happens when people like Violet shove you onto a path regardless of your thoughts.

?So how many of you liked the poem?? Ms. Whitlock asks.

The entire class raises their hands. Almost everyone, except for me and Razor

And don?t miss the next chapters of LONG WAY HOME!

Seventeen-year-old Violet has always been expected to sit back and let the boys do all the saving.

It?s the code her father, a member of the Reign of Terror motorcycle club, raised her to live by. Yet when her dad is killed carrying out Terror business, Violet knows it?s up to her to do the saving. To protect herself, and her vulnerable younger brother, she needs to cut all ties with the club?including Chevy, the boy she?s known and loved her whole life.

But when a rival club comes after Violet, exposing old secrets and making new threats, she?s forced to question what she thought she knew about her father, the Reign of Terror, and what she thinks she wants. Which means re-evaluating everything: love, family, friends . . . and forgiveness.

Caught in the crosshairs between loyalty and freedom, Violet must decide whether old friends can be trusted?and if she?s strong enough to be the one person to save them all.

Don?t Miss the First Two Titles in the Thunder Road Series!WALK THE EDGE is just $1.99 in eBook for a limited time only – grab your copies today!

Pre-order LONG WAY HOME by Katie McGarry, and fill out THIS FORM, to receive three previously unreleased bonus scenes featuring important ?firsts? in the lives of your favorite characters from the world of Katie McGarry! Complete the form to register your pre-order at https://wyng.com/campaign/820152.

About Katie McGarry

Katie McGarry was a teenager during the age of grunge and boy bands and remembers those years as the best and worst of her life. She is a lover of music, happy endings, reality television, and is a secret University of Kentucky basketball fan.

Katie is the author of full length YA novels, PUSHING THE LIMITS, DARE YOU TO, CRASH INTO YOU, TAKE ME ON, BREAKING THE RULES, NOWHERE BUT HERE and WALK THE EDGE and the e-novellas, CROSSING THE LINE and RED AT NIGHT. Her debut YA novel, PUSHING THE LIMITS was a 2012 Goodreads Choice Finalist for YA Fiction, a RT Magazine’s 2012 Reviewer’s Choice Awards Nominee for Young Adult Contemporary Novel, a double Rita Finalist, and a 2013 YALSA Top Ten Teen Pick. DARE YOU TO was also a Goodreads Choice Finalist for YA Fiction and won RT Magazine?s Reviewer?s Choice Best Book Award for Young Adult Contemporary fiction in 2013.

There?s something strange about the Layne sisters, and Wade Diaz wants nothing to do with them. Especially the one who ripped his heart out and set it on fire before tossing it in the garbage several months ago. Iris. He can?t even think her name without unconsciously rubbing the spot in his chest where she left a gaping hole. But now her sisters are claiming some evil spirit is after his soul, and Iris is the only one who can save him. Well, at least his heart would stop hurting, right? Didn?t sound so bad.

Iris Layne has always been the sweet sister. She?s kind to everyone, including her best friend Wade? Until she makes a horrible mistake and breaks his heart. All she wants is to go back to before ?the dumping?. Of course, Wade would rather see her in hell first. But then Iris touches her sister?s tarot cards and unleashes an evil curse intent on playing a deadly game where no one Iris loves is safe, especially Wade.

How do you convince someone they need your help when you?re the one who hurt them most?

Excerpt from CURSING FATE

Dena and Wade went about tying the boat to the dock. Wade snuck glimpses of Iris as she took off her life jacket.

You?re only torturing yourself, Diaz. He shook his head and finished off the knot he was tying.

A rope hit him in the face.

?Pay attention,? Dena said, towing the rope back to her.

?I was,? Wade said, grabbing the other end.

Dena shot him a knowing smile. ?Not the kind of attention I meant.?

When the boat was secured, Dena urged everyone into the cabin, where she opened a bottle of champagne and poured it into five clear plastic cups.

The last time Dena and he had champagne, they were celebrating her coming out. Dena?s parents weren?t too pleased with her admission about her preference for girls. Her mother cried and her dad gave her the silent treatment. It wasn?t until Dena?s heart condition knocked her on her ass that they came around. After her surgery to fix a faulty valve, Dena?s parents told her they only wished her happiness.

?To Wade,? Dena said, holding up her cup, ?congratulations on finishing this boat.?

?Congratulations,? Violet and Carys said in unison.

Iris rose her cup. ?It looks amazing. Cheers.?

?That sail is beautiful,? Carys said and slipped into the booth. ?It?s from the painting Iris gave you, right? At a birthday or something??

Violet and Dena scooted in next to Carys.

?Yeah, she gave it to me on my thirteenth birthday.? Wade leaned against the counter and took a sip of the cheap champagne.

Iris leaned close enough to Wade that he could smell her floral shampoo. ?You are so talented,? she whispered, her breath tickling his ear and sending a spark through his body. He wished they were alone. He had an intense urge to kiss her.

He swallowed a big swig of bubbly. ?Look who?s talking. You have mad painting skills.?

?So when are you taking your dad out?? she asked.

?Halloween morning. He?ll be back this week sometime.?

?Oh,? she said. ?What about the haunted house? We were going to set up that day.?

?Don?t worry.? He brushed her hair away from her cheek and quickly brought his hand back. She leaned away from him, a startled look on her face.

Why did I do that?

It was as if he were on autopilot. There was no thought behind it. ?We?re going early in the morning,? he said, looking down at his cup. Bubbles popped in the golden liquid. ?I?ll be over in plenty of time to help out.?

?Wade,? she said so quietly the others couldn?t hear her over their own conversation.

He looked at her.

She touched his arm. ?You don?t have to be afraid of me. I?m still Iris. I just made a mistake. I won?t hurt you again.? And then she mouthed, I?m sorry.

He wished he could forget, but he hadn?t thought she would hurt him the first time. It was that fact that kept him from giving them another chance.

About Brenda Drake

Brenda Drake grew up the youngest of three children, an Air Force brat, and the continual new kid at school. Her fondest memories growing up are of her eccentric, Irish grandmother?s animated tales, which gave her a strong love for storytelling.

So it was only fitting that she would choose to write stories with a bend toward the fantastical. When she?s not writing or hanging out with her family, she haunts libraries, bookstores, and coffee shops, or reads someplace quiet and not at all exotic (much to her disappointment).

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2016/11/cursing-fate-by-brenda-drake.html/feed411075http://bookandlatte.com/2016/11/cursing-fate-by-brenda-drake.htmlSale Blitz | TOUCHING FATE by Brenda Drakehttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/z8u-T3_pN-0/touching-fate-sale-blitz.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2016/11/touching-fate-sale-blitz.html#commentsMon, 07 Nov 2016 14:13:08 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=11059I’m so excited to take part in Brenda Drake’s Sale & Excerpt Blitz for TOUCHING FATE! Check out the excerpt below and grab it for just $0.99, peek at CURSING FATE (book 2), and be sure to enter the amazing giveaway! Aster Layne believes in physics, not psychics. A tarot card reading on the Ocean City Boardwalk should have been a [...]

I’m so excited to take part in Brenda Drake’s Sale & Excerpt Blitz for TOUCHING FATE! Check out the excerpt below and grab it for just $0.99, peek at CURSING FATE (book 2), and be sure to enter the amazing giveaway!

Aster Layne believes in physics, not psychics. A tarot card reading on the Ocean City Boardwalk should have been a ridiculous, just-for-fun thing. It wasn?t. Aster discovers she has a very unscientific gift?with a simple touch of the cards, she can change a person?s fate.

Reese Van Buren is cursed. Like the kind of old-school, centuries-old curse that runs in royal families. Every firstborn son is doomed to die on his eighteenth birthday?and Reese?s is coming up fast. Bummer. He tries to distract himself from his inevitable death?only to find the one person who can save him.

Aster doesn?t know that the hot Dutch guy she?s just met needs her help?or that he?s about to die.

But worst of all?she doesn?t know that her new gift comes with dark, dark consequences that can harm everyone she loves.

Excerpt from TOUCHING FATE

They spread a blanket on the sand and sat on top of it. Aster pulled her legs into a pretzel. ?So what?s in the box??

?You aren?t the patient type, are you?? He undid the ribbon holding the package closed and flipped open the top, then handed her a napkin.

The wind whipped Aster?s hair across her face and she tucked it behind her ears. ?Nice thermos,? she said.

?My mother sent it to us. She has an addiction to online purchasing.? He lifted out a cream puff.

It was her favorite pastry at the shop. ?I?m impressed. You did your research. I?ll have to thank Leah later.?

He chuckled, handing her the pastry. ?You will. She was very specific.?

She took a bite, the creamy, sugary goodness tasting like heaven on her tongue.

?Good, huh??

She nodded, not wanting to speak and spray powdered sugar at him or something.

He unscrewed the thermos and poured a brown liquid into the cap. ?Hot cocoa?? he asked, and passed the cap to her.

?Obviously,? she said, taking a sip. Because cream puffs tasted best with hot chocolate. It was sweet that he?d taken the time to find out what she liked.

They ate in silence, but it wasn?t boring. It was more like?comfortable. When they finished, Reese screwed the cap back onto the thermos and placed the used napkins in the box. He scooted as close as he could get to her. She leaned her head on his shoulder, and he slid his arm behind her back. They watched the sun set on the ocean and listened to the waves clap against the beach.

?It?s beautiful here,? Reese said, finally.

She raised her head to look into his eyes. ?This is the best date ever.?

He smiled, brushing crumbs away from the corner of her mouth. Her heart shivered as his fingers moved to her chin and lifted her mouth to his. The kiss was soft and gentle, and way too short for Aster. He pulled away, a serious expression on his face.

?Do you believe in fate?? he said softly.

Aster swallowed back her surprise.

?I think I do,? she said, recovering. It was a lame response. Before meeting Miri, she probably would have said she did right off. It used to be just a word without meaning. But now, it held a power beyond that of a simple definition in a dictionary. She had looked the word up. Fate was unavoidable. Something that couldn?t be measured. Yet she had the ability to shift it. She worried she didn?t have the maturity to know when to let sleeping fates lie.

?I believe in it,? Reese said with a nod. ?We were to go straight to Florida, but I had an urge to stop in Ocean City. I felt you. Fate brought us together.?

?I thought it was an ice cream cone.? She giggled.

Oh God, Aster, stop giggling, already.

He touched her cheek. ?I?m being serious here. I don?t want to hesitate anymore. There isn?t much time. I?ll only be here a few months.?

Iris Layne has always been the sweet sister. She?s kind to everyone, including her best friend Wade? Until she makes a horrible mistake and breaks his heart. All she wants is to go back to before ?the dumping?.

Of course, Wade would rather see her in hell first. But then Iris touches her sister?s tarot cards and unleashes an evil curse intent on playing a deadly game where no one Iris loves is safe, especially Wade.

About Brenda Drake

Brenda Drake grew up the youngest of three children, an Air Force brat, and the continual new kid at school. Her fondest memories growing up are of her eccentric, Irish grandmother?s animated tales, which gave her a strong love for storytelling.

So it was only fitting that she would choose to write stories with a bend toward the fantastical. When she?s not writing or hanging out with her family, she haunts libraries, bookstores, and coffee shops, or reads someplace quiet and not at all exotic (much to her disappointment).

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2016/11/touching-fate-sale-blitz.html/feed111059http://bookandlatte.com/2016/11/touching-fate-sale-blitz.html20 YA Ebooks Under $3!http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/NBgFz3fyLn4/ya-ebooks-deals.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2016/11/ya-ebooks-deals.html#commentsWed, 02 Nov 2016 14:08:11 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=11048Looking for a book to curl up with this fall? Don’t miss out on these great e-book deals! Here are some great young adult Kindle deals to enjoy this fall – there’s something for everyone! Young Adult EBook Deals These books were on sale for $0.99 or FREE at the time of this post (11/2/16), but be sure [...]

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2016/11/ya-ebooks-deals.html/feed211048http://bookandlatte.com/2016/11/ya-ebooks-deals.htmlABaaL’s WoW Pick of the Week (160)http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/IP3aNVBRfRM/wow-pick-160.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2016/11/wow-pick-160.html#commentsWed, 02 Nov 2016 13:34:24 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=11053Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating. This week’s WoW feature is: By Your Side by Kasie West Publisher: HarperTeenExpected publication: January 31, 2017 In this irresistible story, Kasie West explores the timeless question of what to do when you fall for the [...]

by Kasie West
Publisher: HarperTeenExpected publication: January 31, 2017

In this irresistible story, Kasie West explores the timeless question of what to do when you fall for the person you least expect. Witty and romantic, this paperback original from a fan favorite is perfect for fans of Stephanie Perkins and Morgan Matson.

When Autumn Collins finds herself accidentally locked in the library for an entire weekend, she doesn?t think things could get any worse. But that?s before she realizes that Dax Miller is locked in with her. Autumn doesn?t know much about Dax except that he?s trouble. Between the rumors about the fight he was in (and that brief stint in juvie that followed it) and his reputation as a loner, he?s not exactly the ideal person to be stuck with. Still, she just keeps reminding herself that it is only a matter of time before Jeff, her almost-boyfriend, realizes he left her in the library and comes to rescue her.

Only he doesn?t come. No one does.

Instead it becomes clear that Autumn is going to have to spend the next couple of days living off vending-machine food and making conversation with a boy who clearly wants nothing to do with her. Except there is more to Dax than meets the eye. As he and Autumn first grudgingly, and then not so grudgingly, open up to each other, Autumn is struck by their surprising connection. But can their feelings for each other survive once the weekend is over and Autumn?s old life, and old love interest, threaten to pull her from Dax?s side? (Goodreads)

]]>Did you see? The cover was finally revealed for Brenda Drake’s CURSING FATE (The Fated #2), today! Check out the cover below and let us know what you think in the comments!

Cursing Fate (The Fated #2) by Brenda Drake

Publication Date: November 21, 2016

There?s something strange about the Layne sisters, and Wade Diaz wants nothing to do with them. Especially the one who ripped his heart out and set it on fire before tossing it in the garbage several months ago. Iris. He can?t even think her name without unconsciously rubbing the spot in his chest where she left a gaping hole. But now her sisters are claiming some evil spirit is after his soul, and Iris is the only one who can save him. Well, at least his heart would stop hurting, right? Didn?t sound so bad.

Iris Layne has always been the sweet sister. She?s kind to everyone, including her best friend Wade? Until she makes a horrible mistake and breaks his heart. All she wants is to go back to before ?the dumping?. Of course, Wade would rather see her in hell first. But then Iris touches her sister?s tarot cards and unleashes an evil curse intent on playing a deadly game where no one Iris loves is safe, especially Wade.

How do you convince someone they need your help when you?re the one who hurt them most?

What do you think of the cover?

I love it how it’s romantic with a hint of magic going on… Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

About Brenda Drake

Brenda Drake grew up the youngest of three children, an Air Force brat, and the continual new kid at school. Her fondest memories growing up are of her eccentric, Irish grandmother?s animated tales, which gave her a strong love for storytelling.

So it was only fitting that she would choose to write stories with a bend toward the fantastical. When she?s not writing or hanging out with her family, she haunts libraries, bookstores, and coffee shops, or reads someplace quiet and not at all exotic (much to her disappointment).

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2016/10/cursing-fate-cover-reveal.html/feed011042http://bookandlatte.com/2016/10/cursing-fate-cover-reveal.htmlHow I Write: Abigail Johnson (IF I FIX YOU)http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/poLHugzAF6s/abigail-johnson-how-i-write.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2016/10/abigail-johnson-how-i-write.html#commentsThu, 20 Oct 2016 12:00:10 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=11032Please help me welcome Abigail Johnson, author of IF I FIX YOU. She’s visiting A Book and a Latte today for a How I Write feature! Check out my Q & A with Abigail below, and be sure to follow the blog tour and enter the giveaway! About Abigail Johnson Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram Abigail was born in Pennsylvania. When she was twelve, [...]

]]>Please help me welcome Abigail Johnson, author of IF I FIX YOU. She’s visiting A Book and a Latte today for a How I Write feature! Check out my Q & A with Abigail below, and be sure to follow the blog tour and enter the giveaway!

About Abigail Johnson

Abigail was born in Pennsylvania. When she was twelve, her family traded in snow storms for year round summers, and moved to Arizona. Abigail chronicled the entire cross-country road trip (in a purple spiral bound notebook that she still has) and has been writing ever since. She became a tetraplegic after breaking her neck in a car accident when she was seventeen, but hasn?t let that stop her from bodysurfing in Mexico, writing and directing a high school production of Cinderella, and publishing her first novel.

Are you a planner (outline, etc.) or do you ?pants? it? Prior to the book I?m working on now, I?ve been a pantser. I?ve never been able to write an outline and I rarely know what I?m going to write on a given day until I write it. However, I wrote a synopsis prior to drafting the book I?m working on now. I still have plenty of room to explore and discover?a perk of being a pantser?while having a loose guide to keep me on track and, hopefully, eliminate the need for as many drafts as I usually write. I kind of feel like I?ve hit on the best of both worlds. Do you write daily or sporadically when you?re inspired? I write M-F and I take the weekends off. I?ve discovered that if I wait for inspiration, I waste a lot of time.What time of day do you find you write best? Or you enjoy more? First thing in the morning or else super late at night. What tool(s) do you use to write? Microsoft Word, Pages, Scrivener, typewriter, pen and paper, and/or napkins/toilet paper? I can?t even imagine writing without Scrivener. Yes, it can seem daunting at first because it?s such a comprehensive program, but the nice thing is that you don?t have to use all the features built-in to Scrivener. I initially tried Scrivener because I wanted a completely full screen to write in, no menus or anything to distract me. I?m a total computer geek though, so I love discovering all the things I can do with it. How do you overcome writer’s block? I refuse to acknowledge its existence. That?s a glib response but it?s true. I don?t get writer?s block because I don?t let myself. When I feel stuck or uncertain as to where my story is going, I write anyway. I write completely worthless stuff that I know I?ll never use. Pure, utter garbage. Sometimes I write a lot of garbage?like a lot, a lot?other times it only takes a little, but eventually I come out the other side. The key is to never stop writing. That is the absolute worst thing you can do as an author. What do you use as inspiration while writing? (Music, pictures, etc.) When I?m revising or reworking a scene, I?ll go with certain songs that match the characters or mood, but for drafting it?s always rainymood.com. Thanks so much for answering my questions! ?

When sixteen-year-old Jill Whitaker?s mom walks out?with a sticky note as a goodbye?only Jill knows the real reason she?s gone. But how can she tell her father? Jill can hardly believe the truth herself. Suddenly, the girl who likes to fix things?cars, relationships, romances, people?is all broken up. Used to be, her best friend, tall, blond and hot flirt Sean Addison, could make her smile in seconds. But not anymore. They don?t even talk. With nothing making sense, Jill tries to pick up the pieces of her life. But when a new guy moves in next door, intense, seriously cute, but with scars?on the inside and out?that he thinks don?t show, Jill finds herself trying to make things better for Daniel. But over one long, hot Arizona summer, she realizes she can?t fix anyone?s life until she fixes her own. And she knows just where to start . . .

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2016/10/abigail-johnson-how-i-write.html/feed411032http://bookandlatte.com/2016/10/abigail-johnson-how-i-write.htmlReview: THIS ADVENTURE ENDS by Emma Millshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/MrL2dUS29QI/this-adventure-ends-by-emma-mills.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2016/10/this-adventure-ends-by-emma-mills.html#respondTue, 11 Oct 2016 21:49:50 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=11020This book took me by surprise. See, I was in a reading slump. I picked up and set aside 3 books because I just… wasn’t in the mood. This was the third book {wink}. But after about a week of not reading, I was bummed out, so I decided I was going restart This Adventure Ends and sit and [...]

Sloane isn't expecting to fall in with a group of friends when she moves from New York to Florida?especially not a group of friends so intense, so in love, so all-consuming. Yet that's exactly what happens.

Sloane becomes closest to Vera, a social-media star who lights up any room, and Gabe, Vera's twin brother and the most serious person Sloane's ever met. When a beloved painting by the twins' late mother goes missing, Sloane takes on the responsibility of tracking it down, a journey that takes her across state lines?and ever deeper into the twins' lives.

Filled with intense and important friendships, a wonderful warts-and-all family, shiveringly good romantic developments, and sharp, witty dialogue, this story is about finding the people you never knew you needed.

This book took me by surprise. See, I was in a reading slump. I picked up and set aside 3 books because I just… wasn’t in the mood. This was the third book {wink}. But after about a week of not reading, I was bummed out, so I decided I was going restart This Adventure Ends and sit and make myself read 2 chapters. I read 3 or 4 that night, and the next day I pretty much consumed it in one sitting! This was the book I didn’t even know I needed, and I now have a new favorite author.

The story begins with Sloane having recently moved to a small tourist town in Florida, and she’s actually cool with it, as she didn’t have close friends that she left behind. Being somewhat of a loner, she uses humor to hide that she actually cares. One night her jokes and need to stand up to a bully lands her with a new group of friends – Vera and her twin Gabe, Frank, Remy, and Audrey. From there, we see her develop relationships with these characters, as well as insight into her fantastic relationship with her father. Sloane doesn’t quite get what people see in her, or why they want to be her friend, but she goes along for the ride… It was great to watch her realize her best friendship with Vera, and the (super) slow burning romance with Gabe. Oh, and Frank, you can’t help but love him. Seriously, the best part about this book is the character development and the relationships – every character had a vital role. I loved it!

What was surprising is that This Adventure Ends reads like a light hearted book, but then you get about 3/4 of the way in and realize just how powerful it is. It’s a coming-of-age story with friendship, an awesome family dynamic, road trips, fandom, romance, and a quest. What makes it so powerful is the honesty of the writing. Mills nailed the voice of a 17 year old, the friendship development, and what it means to be part of a fandom.

This Adventure Ends is as beautiful as its cover. Honest and heart-tugging. This book made me laugh out loud in one moment, and cry the next. One of my favorite reads this year; I highly recommend it to those that love a character-driven story.

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2016/10/this-adventure-ends-by-emma-mills.html/feed011020http://bookandlatte.com/2016/10/this-adventure-ends-by-emma-mills.htmlRelease+Giveaway | BLACK FLOWERS, WHITE LIES by Yvonne Ventrescahttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/1LclgnDrw98/black-flowers-white-lies-by-yvonne-ventresca-release.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2016/10/black-flowers-white-lies-by-yvonne-ventresca-release.html#respondTue, 04 Oct 2016 13:18:05 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=11011We’re excited to be celebrating the release of BLACK FLOWERS, WHITE LIES by Yvonne Ventresca this week! Check out the book’s details and teaser, and be sure to enter the giveaway below. BLACK FLOWERS, WHITE LIESPublisher: Sky Pony Press Publication: October 4, 2016 Her father died before she was born, but Ella Benton knows they have a supernatural connection. Since [...]

Her father died before she was born, but Ella Benton knows they have a supernatural connection. Since her mother discourages these beliefs, Ella keeps her cemetery visits secret. But she may not be the only one with secrets. Ella?s mother might be lying about how Dad died sixteen years ago. Newfound evidence points to his death in a psychiatric hospital, not as a result of a tragic car accident as her mother always claimed. After a lifetime of just the two of them, Mom suddenly feels like a stranger.

When a handprint much like the one Ella left on her father?s tombstone mysteriously appears on the bathroom mirror, at first she wonders if Dad is warning her of danger as he did once before. If it?s not a warning, could her new too-good-to-be-true boyfriend be responsible for the strange occurrences? Or maybe it?s the grieving building superintendent whose dead daughter strongly resembles Ella? As the unexplained events become more frequent and more sinister, Ella becomes terrified about who?or what?might harm her.

Soon the evidence points to someone else entirely: Ella herself. What if, like her father, she?s suffering from a breakdown? In this second novel from award-winning author Yvonne Ventresca, Ella desperately needs to find answers, no matter how disturbing the truth might be.

Excerpt from Black Flowers, White Lies

I take the stairs down. Once the stairwell door closes behind me, the basement seems darker than ever, as if the electricity is off. The light on my phone helps guide me to the laundry room. I flick the switch. Nothing happens. Not even the one good light turns on.

Maybe Norma?s in the middle of fixing the lightbulbs. She could have turned off the circuit breaker or something. But when I open the dryer, the drum light turns on as I dump the clothes into the basket. The electricity is working after all.

The light from the dryer illuminates the space and some­thing catches my eye. I focus my phone on the wall to my left.

?No.? I back up, banging into the open dryer door.

One word is scrawled in red capital letters across the wall: DAUGHTER. A bloody handprint drips in the space underneath.

I grab the basket. A cat T-shirt falls, but I don?t stop. I need to escape, fast. The elevator takes forever. The doors slide open. I expect demons, monsters, ghouls. It?s empty.

On our floor, I race to our apartment, fumble with my keys. My hands tremble too much to open the lock. ?Blake!?

When he opens the door, I drop the basket to grab his arm. ?Come with me.?

?El, what?s going on??

I can?t speak on the elevator ride to the basement.

?Seriously, are you okay? You?re scaring me.?

?I?ll show you.?

I turn my phone light on when we leave the elevator and pull him into the dark laundry room. I illuminate the wall but can?t bear to look. ?See??

He?s quiet. I figure he?s as frightened as I am.

?See what??

I turn my head and shine the light where the red scrawl was minutes before.

There?s nothing.

?Why are we in the dark?? Blake asks, flipping the laun­dry room switch.

The lights come on. The sudden brightness makes me blink as I stare at the blank wall.

About the Author

Yvonne Ventresca?s latest young adult novel, BLACK FLOWERS, WHITE LIES will be published by Sky Pony Press in October 2016.

Her debut YA novel, PANDEMIC, won a 2015 Crystal Kite Award from the Society of Children?s Book Writers and Illustrators. In PANDEMIC, a teen struggles to survive not only a deadly outbreak and its real-life consequences, but also her own personal demons. Ventresca’s other works include the short story ?Escape to Orange Blossom,? which was selected for the dystopian anthology PREP FOR DOOM, along with two nonfiction books, PUBLISHING (Careers for the 21st Century) and AVRIL LAVIGNE (People in the News).

Giveaway

Prize pack includes a three panel rustic chalkboard with a $25 Amex gift card, a $25 Sephora gift card, and a signed copy of Black Flowers, White Lies.a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sixteen-year-old Jessa Stone is the most valuable citizen in Eden City. Her psychic abilities could lead to significant scientific discoveries?if only she?d let TechRA study her. But after they kidnapped and experimented on her as a child, cooperating with the scientists is the last thing Jessa would do.

But when she discovers the past isn?t what she assumed, Jessa must join forces with budding scientist Tanner Callahan to rectify a fatal mistake made ten years ago. She?ll do anything to change the past and save her sister?even if it means aligning with the enemy she swore to defeat.

Excerpt from Remember Yesterday

I lift my eyes to meet his, and I reach into the future?his future. The vision pours into me. The future Tanner grabs me and kisses me. Without warning, without hesitation. It is hot and searing and exquisite. And I like it. Oh, how I like it.

?No!? I fall out of the vision and scoot away from him, so far that I approach the edge of the platform. My pulse is thundering; my nerves are jumping. Oh, Fates. What?s wrong with me? Is it because I don?t want him to kiss me? Or because I want it too much?

His eyes turn watchful. “Come back here, Jessa. You’re too close to the sky.”

I look into the open space, fluffy with wads of cotton-ball clouds. I take a breath, hoping to inhale some of the sky’s serenity. He doesn’t know about the kiss. Why would he? In the vision, he acted impulsively, without premeditation. The desire to kiss me hasn’t arisen in him yet. Maybe I can prevent it from cropping up altogether.

“Look, you don’t want to kiss me,” I babble, staying where I am. And hope I sound more reasonable than I feel. “It’s only because we talked about kissing the other day. When you talk about something, you give it life. Make it real. Like an annoying song you can’t get out of your head.”

He creeps toward me, his eyes flicking between my face and the sky. “So you can’t get the idea of kissing me out of your head?”

“I said it was annoying. Like a song. Not based on anything real.”

He stops five feet from the edge of the platform. “So let me get this straight. You saw into the future and we kissed. Right?”

“Y-yes,? I stutter, shocked that he guessed the truth so easily. ?But it doesn’t have to happen that way,” I add quickly. “As my sister proved, we’re in control of our own fate. We can make any future we wish.”

“Unless this is our Fixed.” His voice is low, rough. And yet, every syllable imprints into my memory forever. “Unless this kiss is so important, it happens in every one of our worlds.”

“It’s just a kiss. How can it be that important?”

His eyes glitter with the challenge. With one last look at the platform’s edge, he crawls to me, slowly but steadily. “The path of our particular world might depend on this kiss. Would you risk our future just to be stubborn?”

And then, he’s right in front of me. He rests his hands lightly on my back. They slide down to my waist, until his fingers brush against the strip of bare skin between my pants and top. I shiver, and my skin pebbles into a million goose bumps. He pulls me against him. So much of my body is touching his that I can’t think; I can’t breathe. All I can do is feel. His trembling breath. My hammering heart. His shaking hands?or hell, maybe that’s me, vibrating against his touch.

Our lips are inches apart. Time blends together. You couldn’t move me from this spot if the world were crashing down around us.

“I thought I wasn’t your type,” I whisper.

“You’re not,” he says. “But for the fate of our world, I’m willing to make the sacrifice.”

And then, he closes the gap between us.

About the Author

Pintip Dunn is a New York Times bestselling author of YA fiction. She graduated from Harvard University, magna cum laude, with an A.B. in English Literature and Language, and received her J.D. at Yale Law School.

Pintip is represented by literary agent Beth Miller of Writers House. Her debut novel, FORGET TOMORROW, won the RWA RITA® for Best First Book. Her other books include THE DARKEST LIE and REMEMBER YESTERDAY.

She lives with her husband and children in Maryland. You can learn more about Pintip and her books at www.pintipdunn.com

Giveaway

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2016/10/remember-yesterday-by-pintip-dunn.html/feed311005http://bookandlatte.com/2016/10/remember-yesterday-by-pintip-dunn.htmlRoald Dahl 100 Celebratory Blog Tour | THE MAGIC FINGERhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/g05qNoClGF0/roald-dahl-100-blog-tour.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2016/09/roald-dahl-100-blog-tour.html#respondWed, 14 Sep 2016 12:00:53 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=10992A Book and a Latte is pleased to be taking part in the Roald Dahl 100 Celebratory Blog Tour! Check out an excerpt from the book, enter the giveaway, and be sure to check to see if your city is holding events to celebrate! 2016 marks 100 years since the birth of Roald Dahl, the author of beloved stories such as [...]

]]>A Book and a Latte is pleased to be taking part in the Roald Dahl 100 Celebratory Blog Tour! Check out an excerpt from the book, enter the giveaway, and be sure to check to see if your city is holding events to celebrate!

2016 marks 100 years since the birth of Roald Dahl, the author of beloved stories such as Matilda, Fantastic Mr. Fox, and The BFG. Two of Roald Dahl?s most popular novels, James and the Giant Peach and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, were written while Roald Dahl lived in the U.S. and were inspired by American culture?finding success here first before going on to become global bestsellers.

?If you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.? — Roald Dahl

What happens when the hunter becomes the hunted?

To the Gregg family, hunting is just plain fun. To the girl who lives next door, it’s just plain horrible. She tries to be polite. She tries to talk them out of it, but the Greggs only laugh at her. Then one day the Greggs go too far, and the little girl turns her Magic Finger on them. When she’s very, very angry, the little girl’s Magic Finger takes over. She really can’t control it, and now it’s turned the Greggs into birds! Before they know it, the Greggs are living in a nest, and that’s just the beginning of their problems….

Excerpt from The Magic Finger by Roald Dahl

The farm next to ours is owned by Mr and Mrs Gregg. The Greggs have two children, both of them boys. Their names are Philip and William. Sometimes I go over to their farm to play with them.

I am a girl and I am eight years old.

Philip is also eight years old.

William is three years older. He is ten.

What?

Oh, all right, then.

He is eleven.

Last week, something very funny happened to the Gregg family. I am going to tell you about it as best I can.

Now the one thing that Mr Gregg and his two bots loved to do more than anything else was to go hunting. Every Saturday morning they would take their guns and go off into the woods to look for animals ans birds to shoot. Even Philip, who was only eight years old, had a gun of his own.

I can?t stand hunting. I just cant stand it. It doesn?t seem right to me that men and boys should kill animals just for the fun they get out of it. So I used to try to stop Philip and William form doing it. Every time I went over to their farm I would do my best to talk them out of it, but they only laughed at me.

I even said something about it once to Mr Gregg, but he just walked on past me as if I wasn?t there.

Then, one Saturday morning, I saw Philip and William coming out of the woods with their father, and they were carrying a lovely young deer.

This made me so cross that I started shouting at them.

The boys laughed and made faces at me, and Mr Gregg told me to go home and mind my own P?s and Q?s.

Well, that did it!

I saw red.

And before I was able to stop myself, I did something I never meant to do.

In the Denver area?! Join the celebration!

*Tattered Cover Book Store? 2526 E Colfax Ave, Denver, CO ? Saturday Sept. 17 ? 1-3PM?One of the largest independent bookstores in the US, Tattered Cover will have Roald Dahl-themed crafts, activities, Voodoo Doughnuts, and giveaways. In partnership with Alamo Drafthouse, there will be a Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory screening at 11.30AM.

There’s also events planned in these cities:Austin | Boston | Los Angeles | New York | Portland | San Francisco A quick Google search should lead you to them!

The celebrations will culminate in the biggest Roald Dahl birthday party of all time in bookstores, libraries, classrooms and public places across the country the weekend of September 17th.

About Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl (1916-1990) was born in Llandaff, South Wales, and went to Repton School in England. His parents were Norwegian, so holidays were spent in Norway. As he explains in Boy, he turned down the idea of university in favor of a job that would take him to”a wonderful faraway place. In 1933 he joined the Shell Company, which sent him to Mombasa in East Africa. When World War II began in 1939 he became a fighter pilot and in 1942 was made assistant air attaché in Washington, where he started to write short stories. His first major success as a writer for children was in 1964. Thereafter his children’s books brought him increasing popularity, and when he died children mourned the world over, particularly in Britain where he had lived for many years.The BFG is dedicated to the memory of Roald Dahls eldest daughter, Olivia, who died from measles when she was seven ? the same age at which his sister had died (fron appendicitis) over forty years before. Quentin Blake, the first Children?s Laureate of the United Kingdom, has illustrated most of Roald Dahl?s children?s books.

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2016/09/roald-dahl-100-blog-tour.html/feed010992http://bookandlatte.com/2016/09/roald-dahl-100-blog-tour.htmlInterview | WISH by Barbara O’Connorhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/swXxOguZJkw/wish-by-barbara-oconnor.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2016/08/wish-by-barbara-oconnor.html#respondWed, 31 Aug 2016 12:00:33 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=10987Please give a warm welcome to Barbara O’Connor, author of Wish! She’s stopping by A Book and a Latte today for an interview as part of her blog tour. Check out my Q & A with Barbara below, and be sure to enter the giveaway! Isn’t the cover adorable?! Eleven-year-old Charlie Reese has been making the same secret wish [...]

]]>Please give a warm welcome to Barbara O’Connor, author of Wish! She’s stopping by A Book and a Latte today for an interview as part of her blog tour. Check out my Q & A with Barbara below, and be sure to enter the giveaway! Isn’t the cover adorable?!

Eleven-year-old Charlie Reese has been making the same secret wish every day since fourth grade. She even has a list of all the ways there are to make the wish, such as cutting off the pointed end of a slice of pie and wishing on it as she takes the last bite. But when she is sent to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina to live with family she barely knows, it seems unlikely that her wish will ever come true. That is until she meets
Wishbone, a skinny stray dog who captures her heart, and Howard, a neighbor boy who proves surprising in lots of ways. Suddenly Charlie is in serious danger of discovering that what she thought she wanted may not be what she needs at all.

Q & A with Barbara O’Connor

With the help of a true-blue friend, a big-hearted aunt and uncle, and a stray dog, a girl learns the meaning of family in the least likely of places

(Okay, I cheated. 149)

What is the one book you think everyone should read?

Don?t Let?s Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood by Alexandra Fuller. I adore memoirs and this one is so unique and interesting.

Okay, I?m cheating again?.adding another: The Liar?s Club A Memoir by Mary Karr.

What are your pet peeves?

Rude people, especially those who talk loudly on their cell phones in public places

People who wear short shorts and flip flops on airplanes (I know, I sound like my grandmother.)

People with bad table manners (Uh oh, sounding like grandma again)

Tell us your most rewarding experience since being published.

I?ve been blessed to have had many rewarding experiences but just recently had the ultimate one. I?ve loved Sharon Creech?s work for a long, long time. She?s a writer I really admire and respect. I recently learned that we will be on a panel together at NCTE in November in Atlanta. It feels surreal to be on a panel with someone I?ve admired for so long. Pinch me!

What?s your favorite quote?

I love a quote by Phyllis Fogelman, the editor of Mildred Taylor?s, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry.

On the subject of protecting children from the harsh realities of life, Ms. Fogelman says: ?It is generally knowledge, not a lack of it, that arms children and helps to prepare them for the world as it is rather than what we would like it to be.?

As a kid, what did you want to be when you “grew up”?

A teacher. But now I know that that is one of the hardest jobs ever. I?m in schools a lot and when I see what a teacher?s day is like, it makes my head spin. But great teachers are such a gift and make a huge difference in the lives of children.

Which authors have influenced you most?

I credit Cynthia Rylant with jump-starting my writing career. I was floundering trying to find my voice when I read Missing May. I loved how that book was written with such a strong sense of place. That?s when I realized I wanted to write with a strong sense of place, too. I began to write stories set in the South of my childhood. Voila! I found my voice.

Two other authors I admire for their distinct writing voices are Linda Urban and Kate DiCamillo.

What is your guilty pleasure?

Cold beer and potato chips for lunch.

What TV show/movie/book is your guilty pleasure?

Judge Judy and Survivor

What is something people would be surprised to know about you?

I have no sense of smell.

How did you go about publishing your book?

I had submitted Beethoven in Paradise to quite a few publishers and was gathering an ever-growing collection of rejection letters. Author Leslie Davis Guccione was publishing with Scholastic at the time, working with editor Ann Reit. She graciously asked Ann if she would take a look at the manuscript. As all published authors know, getting out of the slush pile means a lot!

Ann liked the manuscript and worked with me on a few rounds of revisions. She ultimately decided it just wasn?t right for her, but she offered to connect me with literary agent Barbara Markowitz. Barbara sold the book to the late Frances Foster, who had her own imprint at FSG. I worked with Frances for 18 years before she passed away. I?ve been with Barbara for almost 25 years.

Who or what inspired your last book?

My latest book is a middle grade novel titled Wish.

I grew up in South Carolina at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains and have many happy memories of day trips up the winding roads. My adult life adventures took me out of the South and eventually to Boston. But after 26 snowy winters there, I have recently moved back and am happily settled in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. I drive up those winding mountain roads and become ten years old again.

So I knew I wanted my next book to be set in those mountains that are my heart?s home and that the setting would be a vital part of the story.

But, of course, I needed a character to put into that setting. Lucky for me I found her when I was teaching a writing workshop to a class of fifth graders at an elementary school in Massachusetts. The students were given a set of questions to use to interview a relative. The next day, they brought those interview questions back to class and I would work with them on writing a short biography of that person. (Many people don?t know this, but I actually started my career writing biographies for children.)

I asked the students to share with the class one of their favorite questions from the interview. One young boy had interviewed his grandmother and he chose to share the question, ?What were some of your favorite activities as a child?? His grandmother had answered, ?Soccer, ballet and fighting.?

I now had a character to plunk down into those mountains. Her name is Charlie Reese, a feisty, troubled child with a bad temper.

What drew you to writing this genre?

Contemporary fiction for middle grade comes naturally to me. I tried to write a picture book once. It was titled Four Fine Friends at the Sleepy Time Motel. My editor (Frances Foster) liked it but thought it had some problems. She gave me a few suggestions for revision but I just couldn?t do it. So I turned it into a middle grade novel, which became Greetings from Nowhere.

When it comes to writing, are you a planner or pantser?

Oh, how I?d love to be a planner. I?m ridiculously organized and probably annoy my friends and family due to my need to organize and schedule and plan. One of my favorite possessions is a label maker. But, alas, I am a pantser! My stories just seem to come during the process of writing as opposed to outlining and planning. While on some levels, that?s not a very enjoyable process for me, on another level, it part of the magic of writing ? that moment when something totally unplanned shows up on the paper. (Yes, I write long hand on paper.)

About Barbara O’Connor

Barbara O’Connor’s awards include the Parents Choice Gold and Silver Award, American Library Association Notable Books, IRA Notable Books for a Global Society, School Library Journal Best Books, and Kirkus Best Books. Her books have been nominated for children’s choice awards in 38 states and voted as a state favorite by children in South Carolina, Indiana, Kansas, and South Dakota.

Barbara was born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina. She draws on her Southern roots to write award-winning books for children in grades 3 to 6.

She currently lives in Asheville, NC. Her latest book is Wish, a middle grade novel published by FSG.

Many thanks to Barbara for answering my questions, and sharing with us! Readers, follow the tour (schedule below) for more chances to win, and be sure to enter the giveaway!

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2016/08/wish-by-barbara-oconnor.html/feed010987http://bookandlatte.com/2016/08/wish-by-barbara-oconnor.htmlRelease Blitz | UNKNOWN by Wendy Higginshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/sejFBESCemg/unknown-by-wendy-higgins.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2016/08/unknown-by-wendy-higgins.html#respondWed, 17 Aug 2016 12:00:54 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=10975I’m so excited to take part in the release blitz for UNKNOWN by Wendy Higgins. Check out the book’s details below, and enter the giveaway! Unknown by Wendy HigginsPublication: August 16, 2016 Amber Tate believes the worst thing she?ll suffer in life is dealing with the unrequited love she feels for her brother?s best friend, Rylen Fite. She also believes [...]

Amber Tate believes the worst thing she?ll suffer in life is dealing with the unrequited love she feels for her brother?s best friend, Rylen Fite. She also believes war is something unfortunate that happens places far, far away from her rural Nevada town. She?s wrong on both counts.

When an unknown organization meticulously bombs major cities in the United States and across the globe, a trickle-down effect spreads to remaining towns at an alarming speed?everything from food and water sources to technology and communications are compromised. Without leadership, the nation is split between paralysis and panic, but Amber isn?t one to hide or watch helplessly. She?s determined to put her nursing skills to use, despite the danger, even if it means working alongside the man she can never have.

In this first installment of NY Times bestselling author, Wendy Higgins?s debut New Adult series, a frighteningly realistic apocalyptic America is brought to life, entwined with searing romantic tension that will leave you eager for more.

About Wendy Higgins

Wendy Higgins is the USA Today and NY Times bestselling author of the SWEET EVIL series from HarperTeen, the high fantasy duology THE GREAT HUNT, and her independently published Irish Fantasy SEE ME.

After earning a Creative Writing degree from George Mason University and a Masters in Curriculum and Instruction from Radford, Wendy taught high school English until achieving her dream job as a full-time writer.

Wendy lives on the Eastern Shore of Virginia with her husband, daughter, son, and little doggie Rue.

Giveaway

Open International: Grand Prize: Signed Paperback copy of Unknown with Poster, bookplate stickers, and bookmarks. 1st & 2nd Prize: digital copies of Unknown (has to be B&N or Amazon user – will be gifted via their email address) plus signed bookmarks and bookplate stickers.a Rafflecopter giveaway

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2016/08/unknown-by-wendy-higgins.html/feed010975http://bookandlatte.com/2016/08/unknown-by-wendy-higgins.htmlInterview with Mark Perini (You Before Anyone Else)http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/e61cvWMkhPU/you-before-anyone-else-tour.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2016/08/you-before-anyone-else-tour.html#commentsFri, 05 Aug 2016 12:00:16 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=10962Please welcome Mark Perini, co-author of YOU BEFORE ANYONE ELSE. He’s stopping by today for a Q & A as part his blog tour. Be sure to check out the book, his interview, and enter the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win! Model Finley needs someone to help her shed her “good girl” persona, so she’ll try Eddie [...]

Please welcome Mark Perini, co-author of YOU BEFORE ANYONE ELSE. He’s stopping by today for a Q & A as part his blog tour. Be sure to check out the book, his interview, and enter the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!

Model Finley needs someone to help her shed her “good girl” persona, so she’ll try Eddie on for size.New York City model Finley is fed up with hearing the same feedback at castings: she needs to take some serious action to wipe the “good girl” stamp from her resume if she wants to launch to stardom.

Enter Eddie Wells. He’s shallow, predictable?and just as lost as Finley feels. Deep down, Finley is drawn to Eddie’s bravado, his intensity. Except Eddie is hiding something. A big something. And when it surfaces, both loving and leaving Finley will become so much harder.

Q & A with Mark Perini,
co-author ofYou Before Anyone Else

Young models Eddie & Finley struggle to determine if love trumps all as secrets come to light in the dark corners of NYC?s modeling industry

Are you working on something new? Can you tell us what?s coming next?

I?m writing a speculative YA about a kid named Cole who wakes up from a coma after sustaining a brain injury and subsequently starts to lose touch with reality. He has two lives?the reality and the dream world. He finds the dream world more alluring.

What?s the best writing advice you?ve received?

Stephen King was asked what he thought writing is at its core. His answer in his book On Writing was ?Telepathy, of course.? And that really struck a chord with me. When you?re writing, you are essentially communicating your ideas directly into the mind to the readers. So that?s the basis of why I write?because who doesn?t want super powers? All joking aside, I knew I had a strong message to send and if I could send it ?telepathically? or otherwise, it was my duty and privilege to do so.

I wanted to be a spy. More specifically, I wanted to be James Bond. I wanted to know all the worlds? secrets and use all the most advanced gadgets that MI6 had to offer.

Tell us your most rewarding experience since being published.

For sure it was the moment when I finally saw my book on the shelf at Barnes and Nobel. It was a moment of pure ecstasy and accomplishment all wrapped into one.

When it comes to writing, are you a planner or pantser?

I?m a forever a pantser. For me, free writing is extremely liberating and when you take away all those constraints you get something that?s more organic and from the heart.

What is something people would be surprised to know about you?

I?m obsessed with dystopian sci-fi/fantasy. Most of the reading I do is in or around that genre.

What book do you love that doesn’t get a lot of hype?

The Bartimaeus Sequence is my all time favorite YA series. I realize full well that it got a lot of hype back in the day, but I am left wondering why it hasn?t been made into a movie?

About the Authors

ABOUT MARK PERINI:

Mark Perini, is a New York City based author debuting his first YA novel, Halfway Perfect. Additionally, Mark is a featured author in the upcoming anthology, 50 First Times.

Mark began his career as an international fashion model 8 years ago, while simultaneously obtaining a business degree from Seton Hall University. He has a passion for traveling the world, and he’s made a blood pact with friends to see all seven ancient wonders of the world before he’s thirty. Four down three to go.

Julie Cross is a NYT and USA Today bestselling author of New Adult and Young Adult fiction, including the Tempest series, a young adult science fiction trilogy which includes Tempest, Vortex, Timestorm (St. Martin’s Press). She’s also the author of Letters to Nowhere series, Whatever Life Throws at You, Third Degree, Halfway Perfect, and many more to come!

Julie lives in Central Illinois with her husband and three children. She’s a former gymnast, longtime gymnastics fan, coach, and former Gymnastics Program Director with the YMCA. She’s a lover of books, devouring several novels a week, especially in the young adult and new adult genres.

Outside of her reading and writing credibility’s, Julie Cross is a committed–but not talented–long distance runner, creator of imaginary beach vacations, Midwest bipolar weather survivor, expired CPR certification card holder, as well as a ponytail and gym shoe addict.

]]>http://bookandlatte.com/2016/08/you-before-anyone-else-tour.html/feed110962http://bookandlatte.com/2016/08/you-before-anyone-else-tour.htmlInterview with Beth Lewis, author of THE WOLF ROADhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ABookAndALatte/~3/nHXgYfhXJ4Q/the-wolf-road.html
http://bookandlatte.com/2016/07/the-wolf-road.html#respondFri, 29 Jul 2016 21:11:59 +0000http://bookandlatte.com/?p=10954Please give a warm welcome to Beth Lewis, author of THE WOLF ROAD! She’s stopping by A Book and a Latte today for an interview as part of her blog tour. Check out my Q & A with Beth below, and be sure to enter the giveaway! In her debut novel THE WOLF ROAD (July 5, 2016; Crown), author and [...]

]]>Please give a warm welcome to Beth Lewis, author of THE WOLF ROAD! She’s stopping by A Book and a Latte today for an interview as part of her blog tour. Check out my Q & A with Beth below, and be sure to enter the giveaway!

In her debut novel THE WOLFROAD (July 5, 2016; Crown), author and managing editor at London?s Titan Books Beth Lewis introduces us to a world decimated by an unnamed, apocalyptic event and inhabited by desperate people accustomed to hunting, tracking, and killing to survive. Among them is Elka, the young heroine whose unmistakable voice guides us through the untamed landscape of the area formerly known as British Columbia on her journey to escape the horrors of her own past.

Everything Elka knows of the world she learned from the man she calls Trapper, a solitary hunter who took her under his wing when she was just seven years old. He has taught her how to shoot, track, set snares, and start fires?all the skills necessary to survive in a wild, lawless land where men are at the mercy of the elements and one another. But when wanted posters begin appearing in town, Elka realizes that the man she thinks she knows so well is harboring terrible secrets. The more Elka finds out about him, the less sure she becomes about her own identity?especially as she begins to recover some of the painful memories she?s kept at bay throughout her childhood.

As the horrific facts emerge, Elka makes her escape, armed with nothing but her knife and the survival skills he?s taught her. She sets out in the hope of finding her true parents, who traveled to the frozen north years earlier in pursuit of gold, but Elka can tell by the shadows that follow her that Trapper?s on her trail?and he won?t be letting his little girl go without a fight. As she encounters physical hardships, violence, and loneliness that at times test her sanity, she also strains to distinguish between fact and fiction in her own recollections. Ultimately, she will have to turn and confront not just Trapper but the dark reality of her past.

THE WOLFROAD is a tautly suspenseful cat-and-mouse tale of justice and revenge, played out against a vast, unforgiving landscape?told by an unforgettable, tough-as-nails young heroine fighting desperately to escape the terrors of her childhood and rejoin humanity.

?An unrelenting psychological thriller of wilderness survival wrapped in a terrifying hide-and-seek game of trying to escape an unspeakable past. ? Fans of suspense with a touch of horror will be pulled into Elka?s intense struggle to find peace and redemption as the whole truth is finally revealed.?

?Booklist on The WolfRoad

Q & A with Beth Lewis

1THE WOLF ROAD takes place in a post-apocalyptic setting where civilization has essentially collapsed. Modern technology no longer exists, and people have congregated in shanty towns reminiscent of the 1850s American Old West. Do you think this kind of collapse could be a real possibility for us in the future?

I think that kind of threat is always hanging over us. We rely so much on technology that if it ever stopped working, if the electricity was cut off, after a while life would naturally revert to a time before all that existed in the first place, and people born into this new world wouldn?t know any different. We?d need to rebuild and, I hope, would rebuild it better so such a collapse wouldn?t happen again.

Elka describes the blocking of unwanted memories as ?locked doors? that begin to open as she makes realizations about her true past. Why did you decide for it to take so long for her to see life with Trapper as it truly was?

I think people have blindspots when it comes to those they love. They stop seeing faults, they ignore those little annoyances, they make excuses. That?s what Elka does. Elka loves Trapper. He?s her only family, the closest she has to a father, so she?ll do anything she can do keep that veneer in tact. It destroys her to discover what he really is. It takes a long time to rebuild herself but she has to face her past, her demons, and him, to do it. That?s Elka?s real journey and it takes time for her realise the truth, not just about Trapper, but about herself.

It obviously took a lot of research to write The Wolf Road, including learning real wilderness survival skills. How did you get yourself into the mindset you needed to have to include all these details in your narrative?

While I was writing The Wolf Road, I felt like I was always in Elka?s mindset. Her voice is so strong that all I had to do was read a sentence or two and I was back in her head. Survival skills are so instinctual to her that they became instinctual to me when I was writing. Elka will start a fire or set a trap without thinking about it. I could have gone into far more detail about these processes than I did but it became clear early on that Elka wouldn?t go into that detail, she wouldn?t describe the minutiae of her actions unless specifically teaching someone, so neither did I.

You?ve said that you wrote around five novels in three years before you wrote The Wolf Road, which you finished very quickly. What was lacking in the stories that you wrote before and how was The Wolf Road different?

I wrote them wrong. I wrote what I thought people would want to read, rather than what I thought was best for the story. I wrote with an eye on the market, with a thought that this might sell because of XYZ. You can guess how well that worked out. In those previous novels I?d tried to follow someone else?s rules and second-guessed my decisions based what someone else may think is best. The Wolf Road was different. It was a story that forced its way into my head and wouldn?t shut up until I wrote it all down. I didn?t even think about the market, I only thought about the story and the characters and that was a revelation.

You?re a self-proclaimed television enthusiast. What movies or television shows do you love watching the most and did you get any ideas for The Wolf Road from watching television?

I actually got the idea for the whole book from a short scene in a TV show, though I?ll leave you to guess which one. I love TV and film and I?d addicted to nature documentaries and Discovery Channel. Any show on Alaska or the Yukon, survival or outdoor pursuits and I?m sold. In terms of movies, Forrest Gump, Fried Green Tomatoes, Shawshank Redemption, Stand by Me, Misery, White Fang; all movies I?ll watch time and time again because they are just fantastic and each one makes me feel like I?m being told a story, rather than watching a film. I tried to inject some of that feeling into The Wolf Road. I want the reader to feel like they?re being told a story.

About Beth Lewis

Beth Lewis was raised in the wilds of Cornwall and split her childhood between books and the beach. She has traveled extensively throughout the world and has had close encounters with black bears, killer whales, and great white sharks. She has been, at turns, a bank cashier, a fire performer, and a juggler, and she is currently a managing editor at Titan Books in London. The WolfRoadis her first novel.

Many thanks to Beth for stopping by! Readers, follow the tour (schedule below) for more chances to win, and be sure to enter the giveaway!